3. Experimental parameters

The acquisition of a LIBS system requires the instrument's characteristics to be defined according to requirements, while as with any analytical technique, the user must optimize the measurement parameters to obtain the required analytical performance. This section outlines some of the ways in which these parameters can be specified.

The instrument specifications must take into account the analytical specifications, the application constraints and the possible cost. They mainly concern the laser (energy and wavelength) and the associated focusing device, the plasma emission collection system, the spectrometer and the detector.